Well, as usual, I don't have much to say. It was a chaotic week last week, with parents coming into the kindergarten in the mornings, and craziness to boot. Now, again, I'm working more hours.
Boo.
I've been in bed this weekend with the flu, so all of you good praying people say a good prayer for me because we don't really get to call in sick here. I'm glad I've had the weekend to rest up, though, because I've slept most of the weekend and done nothing else. Well, except catch up on my "Bones" episodes, thank you very much, Megs, for getting me hooked on this one. The days are numbered until you get here. Try to pack in a few extra siblings and parents, too, OK?
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Friday, April 18, 2008
It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood
Busan: 65 degrees Farenheit, 18 degrees Celsius, clear. Heather's view outside: easily 70 degrees, and oh, so clear. Spring is here.
But this is not why I thought I would write about the beautiful day in the neighborhood.
Not too long ago, Renee, one of my neighbors, walked with me to school. We walked along my usual route, down "Market Street," turned south towards Allak Junction, and then turned west at Allak to school. We waved at one of the grocers where I stop to buy groceries often, looked in at the man in the pharmacy (he is the father and the husband of the lady and the student with whom I meet for my language exchange), waved at the lady who cooks gimbob in the morning, said to hello to one of her customers who usually waves to me, waved at another friendly grocer near Allak who recognizes me, greeted another man at the corner of Allak junction who politely greets me every morning, and shook hands with a jogger who passes me a couple of mornings a week.
Renee thought this was funny.
She said I might as well be Mr. Rogers with my little neighborhood. I change my shoes when I get to work. I even draw funny pictures for the kids. I don't have a train, though.
I don't know why I was thinking about what Renee said this morning, but I was thinking about how lonely it is: I greet these people--I can say hello and good morning, now, but that is about all--and I have my strange little routine, disconnected and strange as it probably is.
I enjoy it. Mostly, I would rather blend in, so people do not notice me so much. It's interesting, though, to have lots of people happy to see me on a regular basis. It would be nice to talk to people, though, beyond the five words that I know in Korean.
I wonder if Mr. Rogers felt this way, too. Not about the Korean part, I mean.
But this is not why I thought I would write about the beautiful day in the neighborhood.
Not too long ago, Renee, one of my neighbors, walked with me to school. We walked along my usual route, down "Market Street," turned south towards Allak Junction, and then turned west at Allak to school. We waved at one of the grocers where I stop to buy groceries often, looked in at the man in the pharmacy (he is the father and the husband of the lady and the student with whom I meet for my language exchange), waved at the lady who cooks gimbob in the morning, said to hello to one of her customers who usually waves to me, waved at another friendly grocer near Allak who recognizes me, greeted another man at the corner of Allak junction who politely greets me every morning, and shook hands with a jogger who passes me a couple of mornings a week.
Renee thought this was funny.
She said I might as well be Mr. Rogers with my little neighborhood. I change my shoes when I get to work. I even draw funny pictures for the kids. I don't have a train, though.
I don't know why I was thinking about what Renee said this morning, but I was thinking about how lonely it is: I greet these people--I can say hello and good morning, now, but that is about all--and I have my strange little routine, disconnected and strange as it probably is.
I enjoy it. Mostly, I would rather blend in, so people do not notice me so much. It's interesting, though, to have lots of people happy to see me on a regular basis. It would be nice to talk to people, though, beyond the five words that I know in Korean.
I wonder if Mr. Rogers felt this way, too. Not about the Korean part, I mean.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
A strange list
Well, this month has been dragging, and I'm feeling a little blue, so I'm going to make a list of some of the interesting and strange things around here that still make me laugh.
1) The most annoying thing--no toilet paper in the stalls. Even if a public restroom has TP, you have to get it from one large common dispenser.
2) The worst thing I have eaten--a toothpick. I did not eat this intentionally: it was holding together some eggy appetizer thing, and I was with some coworkers, too embarrassed to spit it out. I chewed A LOT, thinking it was a bone or something, and proceeded to dissect the next one carefully with my chopsticks--yep, I ate a toothpick.
3) The most unappetizing thing that I witness on a common basis--people washing food, usually vegetables, with a bucket on a tarp in the street--the same streets where people spit and smoke regularly. Funny thing is, I still eat fresh vegetables and fruit. I just try not to think about where this stuff comes from.
4) The most unappetizing thing that I have only seen once--the fish market at Nampo Dong. This was a really strange market with shark, squid, eel, octopus, and so many other fish, and it was several blocks wide stretching for maybe a mile. The weird thing was watching the fish dance in the bowls and aquariums next to the same chopping blocks where they were going to be slaughtered. It was a little like a surreal zoo where all the animals end up cooked.
5) The best thing I have eaten in Korea--Mexican food, I have to say. I miss it a lot. There's one place that is quite expensive, but they serve free chips and salsa and guacamole with dinner. A close second is anything I eat at my language exchange family's house--the mother can really cook.
6) The strangest thing I have seen--the shark with kyphosis. Or at least I recall the shark from the Busan Aquarium as the shark with scoliosis. Very interesting. I have no idea if this was a defect, a specific breed, or an accident.
7) The best part about working with kids--teaching them to say things like, "Yadda, yadda, yadda," or walking into a classroom and having one of the students start singing, "Everybody dance now," or have one of them run up to you and hug you for no reason whatsoever.
That's all I can think of, except to wish Mikey a happy birthday. I hope you are making a list of things to do, and I hope pinnochle is on it.
1) The most annoying thing--no toilet paper in the stalls. Even if a public restroom has TP, you have to get it from one large common dispenser.
2) The worst thing I have eaten--a toothpick. I did not eat this intentionally: it was holding together some eggy appetizer thing, and I was with some coworkers, too embarrassed to spit it out. I chewed A LOT, thinking it was a bone or something, and proceeded to dissect the next one carefully with my chopsticks--yep, I ate a toothpick.
3) The most unappetizing thing that I witness on a common basis--people washing food, usually vegetables, with a bucket on a tarp in the street--the same streets where people spit and smoke regularly. Funny thing is, I still eat fresh vegetables and fruit. I just try not to think about where this stuff comes from.
4) The most unappetizing thing that I have only seen once--the fish market at Nampo Dong. This was a really strange market with shark, squid, eel, octopus, and so many other fish, and it was several blocks wide stretching for maybe a mile. The weird thing was watching the fish dance in the bowls and aquariums next to the same chopping blocks where they were going to be slaughtered. It was a little like a surreal zoo where all the animals end up cooked.
5) The best thing I have eaten in Korea--Mexican food, I have to say. I miss it a lot. There's one place that is quite expensive, but they serve free chips and salsa and guacamole with dinner. A close second is anything I eat at my language exchange family's house--the mother can really cook.
6) The strangest thing I have seen--the shark with kyphosis. Or at least I recall the shark from the Busan Aquarium as the shark with scoliosis. Very interesting. I have no idea if this was a defect, a specific breed, or an accident.
7) The best part about working with kids--teaching them to say things like, "Yadda, yadda, yadda," or walking into a classroom and having one of the students start singing, "Everybody dance now," or have one of them run up to you and hug you for no reason whatsoever.
That's all I can think of, except to wish Mikey a happy birthday. I hope you are making a list of things to do, and I hope pinnochle is on it.
Sunday, April 6, 2008
The spring is making me trigger-happy
Well, trigger-happy with my camera, at least. The cherry blossoms have been nuts this weekend, and this morning at church we had beautiful weather, so I was out snapping some pictures.
This first picture shows the street in front of Minerva Hall where International Community Church meets. If you zoom in a little you can see the petals all over, snowing down on these cars. I saw some boys and some men shaking trees and catching the petals like I have only seen people catch the first flakes of snow in winter.
This next one is looking down at the soccer field near the Minerva Hall. Koreans are really committed to playing their sports: these teams have been outside playing every morning on Sundays even if it is raining, twenty degrees or whatever. In the distance, Busan Port is visible.
This last picture is near the entrance to the Pusan University of Foreign Studies (PUFS). This walkway is quite steep, but with these trees, I was enjoying every step.
This first picture shows the street in front of Minerva Hall where International Community Church meets. If you zoom in a little you can see the petals all over, snowing down on these cars. I saw some boys and some men shaking trees and catching the petals like I have only seen people catch the first flakes of snow in winter.
This next one is looking down at the soccer field near the Minerva Hall. Koreans are really committed to playing their sports: these teams have been outside playing every morning on Sundays even if it is raining, twenty degrees or whatever. In the distance, Busan Port is visible.
This last picture is near the entrance to the Pusan University of Foreign Studies (PUFS). This walkway is quite steep, but with these trees, I was enjoying every step.
Friday, April 4, 2008
This one is for Mom
Happy birthday to Mom!!!
Mom and I were talking the other day, talking about Meg maybe coming to visit in Korea around my birthday. Mom asked if we would be able to find a birthday cake to celebrate. This made me laugh for two reasons: one, anyone who knows me very well knows that I am not particularly fond of sweets, and two, the cakes here are elaborate and ostentatious.
So, I decided to post a few strange pictures of Korean cakes so that I can show that, 1) Meg and I will be able to find a cake, 2) that an elaborate selection is available, 3) that I'm thinking about Mom dearly on this day, and 4) that this country is wonderfully strange, not the drab place that James may imagine. I put some more pictures on Facebook of strange advertisements.
Actually, I just saw this display case walking home one night. This one is relatively small. I have seen more elaborate and extensive selections, but this one will give you an idea of the way pastries are done.
This is some sort of tiger (or maybe a bear?). Interesting, many cakes are in the shape of animal heads. The first thing that comes to my mind: how in the world are you supposed to cut this thing?
This gives you a small glimpse of the elaborate decorations. The kids at the kindergarten do a birthday party once a month, and the parents send in cakes. Chocolate is a big thing, of course, but fruit seems to be an elaborate decoration.
I don't know what this cake is. It looks like a stack of marshmallows on top of this cake, but who knows.
Mom and I were talking the other day, talking about Meg maybe coming to visit in Korea around my birthday. Mom asked if we would be able to find a birthday cake to celebrate. This made me laugh for two reasons: one, anyone who knows me very well knows that I am not particularly fond of sweets, and two, the cakes here are elaborate and ostentatious.
So, I decided to post a few strange pictures of Korean cakes so that I can show that, 1) Meg and I will be able to find a cake, 2) that an elaborate selection is available, 3) that I'm thinking about Mom dearly on this day, and 4) that this country is wonderfully strange, not the drab place that James may imagine. I put some more pictures on Facebook of strange advertisements.
Actually, I just saw this display case walking home one night. This one is relatively small. I have seen more elaborate and extensive selections, but this one will give you an idea of the way pastries are done.
This is some sort of tiger (or maybe a bear?). Interesting, many cakes are in the shape of animal heads. The first thing that comes to my mind: how in the world are you supposed to cut this thing?
This gives you a small glimpse of the elaborate decorations. The kids at the kindergarten do a birthday party once a month, and the parents send in cakes. Chocolate is a big thing, of course, but fruit seems to be an elaborate decoration.
I don't know what this cake is. It looks like a stack of marshmallows on top of this cake, but who knows.
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